Are you ready for winter?

As the seasons progress and we wistfully look to the south after the retreating migrants, it is time to start thinking about the winter visitors and the residents that stay on to brave the cold months. Those of us who enjoy the fuzzy feeling of sustaining the birds through the winter should now be scraping out all the congealed mess that collects and rots in the bottom of the feeders and scrubbing them out to make sure that they are properly clean. Don’t forget the water!

If you have a garden, now is the time to pile up logs and give them a light covering from your hedge clippings. If you have a few branches or logs left over, lay them along the base of your hedge to hold the fallen leaves in place and provide cover for small mammals and invertebrates.

Stack up your compost heaps and make sure that you have plenty of space for the Fall leaves. The left-overs from any pruning, as dictated by your gardening calendar, can be used to make brush piles. Now, and this is the important bit, leave them alone. You can still add to them, but apart from that, do not disturb ’til Spring

All these measures will provide cover for millions of small invertebrates that need spots to hibernate. However many peanuts we put out, resident and wintering birds will still need natural food and habitat in which to search for it. As Spring approaches, food will already be naturally available for the first tide of migrants heading north.

My wife and I disagree about mowing close to hedges.

I believe that it provides cover for birds and insects,

whilst she considers it to be laziness on my part.

Remember that wood stored for fuel does not count as wildlife habitat as insects and small creatures are likely to be evicted in the coldest, most critical part of the year. Make a permanent woodpile nearby for anything that gets disturbed in cruel conditions.

Redgannet has been working for over 30 years as a crew member/flight attendant and enjoys the well-ventilated air of the outdoors. The nom de blog, Redgannet, was adopted to add an air of mystery and to make himself more attractive to women. His father first whetted Redguga's appetite for all things natural by buying him his first pair of 7x35s and a copy of Thorburn's Birds. Having no mentor beyond an indulgent parent, he spent the first season hoping for an Egyptian Vulture at the bird table in his English garden. His most memorable birding moment is seeing an Egyptian Vulture with those same binoculars 26 years later. Redgannet is married to Canon, but his heart and half of his house belongs to Helen and their son Joseph. He is looking forward to communicating with people who don't ask if he is searching for the "feathered variety" of bird.